breaking into the industry?

Question

heeeey

im almost 16, im a girl from sydney (i live in the city) , i have done some modelling and the people really liked me they referred me to an agency but it like costs alot of money to sign up but i was wondering how i could get into advertisements and possssibly tv? i heared your never suppose to pay for an agent right?

keep in mind im a working class girl with no connections and basically no experience . sounds promising eh?lol .

well all the help you can give would be awesome. iknow its hard to get into it in sydney , better to be somewhere like LA, but its all so costly i dont think thats gonna happen!

should i start phoning in for an agent or something? HELP MEEEE! hehe thanks all :) xoxxx

Answer 1

Hi,

here are three things that might help you:

1) I have a free ebook on my site for new and aspiring actors. It's called How To Start An Acting Career. It's 36 pages and a quick and easy read. I was inspired to write it since I have been answering questions here on yahoo.answers. Pretty much the same questions come up all the time. Just go to http://www.actingcareerstartup.com and sign in on the right column and you can access the book.

2) With regard to getting an agent, you might want to try this approach: http://www.actingcareerstartup.com/how_to_get_an_agent.html

3) try and find some other actors in your country and find out what they do or what they did to get started. Go to your local theater and ask around. You are bound to find someone who can answer your questions.

Hope that helps!

Tony
http://www.actingcareerstartup.com

p.s. Don't forget to get your finances together first so that you will have time to focus on your career and taking classes!

Answer 2

If you want to break into the commercial market, then an agent is by far your best bet. Shop around a bit, have a look at their wall displays as you enter their offices to see the sort of people they do business with. Good agents will have decent contacts in the industry and they do the legwork for you. You only pay them a percentage of the income you earn from the jobs they give you (on average about 10% - some might use a sliding scale: the more they can get you, the more their percentage). But you will need to be prepared! If you haven't had any previous employment, then you will need a decent portfolio of pictures, music or whatever. Don't go to them half-cocked, they won't give you the time of day.
Good luck, and remember me when you're famous!!

Answer 3

I think you should ask this on the Aussie forum.